The feeling of ‘stay home & stay safe’ continues to give way to more enthusiastic traveling and socializing. The sense of newfound freedom feels like a second opportunity for many across the globe, encouraging them to step out and get the best of what they couldn’t enjoy during the global pandemic. While this passion for socializing promises enormous opportunities for the hospitality industry, it also presents an equal amount of challenges, including new consumer expectations where guests seek convenience and sophistication from their favorite brands. According to Technavio Research, the global hospitality real estate market size is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 10.25 percent from 2022 to 2027. Well, that’s not all; the Smart Hospitality market, driven by the need to create unique hospitality experiences, is predicted to grow from $13.6 billion in 2022 to $49.9 billion by 2027 (report by ResearchAndMarkets.com) at a whopping CAGR of 29.8 percent. Deciphering the challenges and opportunities in the post-pandemic hospitality sector through an exclusive interview with CEO Insights is Sunjae Sharma, Managing Director, India & Southwest Asia, Hyatt India Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. With more than three decades of professional experience in the industry, Sunjae is a passionate, visionary leader who excels in exploring new horizons and setting new benchmarks. 

In conversation with Sunjae Sharma, Managing Director, India & Southwest Asia, Hyatt India Consultancy Pvt. Ltd.

 

What are the trends driving the growth of the hospitality sector?
Let me begin by saying that the pandemic has drastically changed the mindset of today’s travelers. They are looking for well-being-oriented and immersive experiences. Accordingly, we are witnessing a massive surge in leisure travel within the domestic market as well as the inbound international travel landscape. Even business travel is being extended to incorporate elements of leisure experiences. 

The human desire to reconnect with loved ones and experience the joy of traveling together to newer destinations has never been so intense. This is reflected in the growing demand for staycations, workcations, and weekend getaways. 

 At Hyatt, our purpose is to care for people, and accordingly, we are reimagining hospitality experiences for the guests. In addition to offering our specially curated initiatives like FIND, Hyatt Dining Club, and Perfectly Yours, we are thoughtfully growing our presence in markets where the guests are willing to travel. We opened our new properties in destinations like Dehradun, Bharuch, Jaipur, and Trivandrum, which truly highlight the optimistic sentiment towards newer locations. In 2022, we opened nine new properties in India – which is a global first for us. This shows the country’s significant position in the global growth pipeline of Hyatt. In 2023, we are slated to open 10 new hotels and introduce our lifestyle brand, JdV by Hyatt, in the country. I am happy to say that we are on our path to celebrating the 50th hotel milestone in India soon.    

Technology has truly been at the heart of this transformation that we are witnessing today in the hospitality sector. While the industry was deeply impacted by the pandemic, the silver lining has been the rapid strides we have taken to embrace technology to enhance guest experiences

What is your insight about the level of competitiveness leaders display to stay afloat in the evolving market?
I always say that adversities can translate into opportunities. I think it has been phenomenal how the hospitality industry, or rather Indian businesses, have taken the learnings of the past few years and converted those into opportunities. For us, Hyatt’s purpose – to care for people so they can be their best– truly served as the guiding light as we navigated through an unprecedented period that has had a tremendous impact on our industry.

Agility and adaptability are essential to deal with changing market dynamics, shifting consumer preferences, or technology trends. Given the unprecedented times we have witnessed, it is imperative for businesses to become one community where everyone stands united to deal with new challenges. 

In challenging scenarios, adapting to the transforming landscape becomes important for business leaders without losing sight of their organization’s larger vision and purpose. However, adapting requires a successful pivot to ensure that your business stays relevant in an evolving market. Investing in your people and culture through initiatives such as reskilling and upskilling becomes important. Lastly, extending a hand to your people to not only empathize but also help them navigate through the rough period goes a long way in staying afloat in difficult circumstances. 

 

How is technology transforming the sector, and what do you suggest to leaders in deploying the latest technologies to enhance their business operations and processes?
Technology has truly been at the heart of this transformation that we are witnessing today in the hospitality sector. While the industry was deeply impacted by the pandemic, the silver lining has been the rapid strides we have taken to embrace technology to enhance guest experiences. 

For us, this focus has been two-fold—customer-facing and colleague-facing. For example, to bring efficacy of operations, we have automated tasks into highly simplified formats so that our colleagues are investing minimal time to check the guests in and rather are spending more time in engaging with them. Additionally, we have reimagined spaces and created a safer, reassuring environment for our guests to relax and work while preserving the guest experience Hyatt is renowned for. Today, when guests step into a Hyatt hotel, they have complete control over how they would like to connect with us—for scheduling housekeeping, choosing between pick-ups or knock-and-go food orders, mobile key entry, contactless check-in and checkout, and more. 

Especially in the MICE segment, virtual or hybrid events are in huge demand to ensure guest safety, and accordingly, we introduced Together by Hyatt in October 2021. Building on Hyatt’s deep-rooted expertise in delivering high-quality meetings and events, Together by Hyatt is designed to support planners at every step of the way as we reimagine what events can look like and collaborate to bring their vision to life, keeping attendee safety and well-being as top priorities. With hybrid events packages, Together by Hyatt uses seamless technology to offer small to large-scale meetings across multiple Hyatt hotels, not just in India but also in Asia Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East. 

Ours is a service industry, and it should be the consumer who decides how much or how little human interaction they desire. All this while ensuring that they receive the best care possible. That’s the key. 

 

In your opinion, what does it take to establish an organization’s brand across various countries strongly? What are the aspects to consider in building a global brand?
To me, it’s the value system that differentiates a brand from the rest and helps build stronger recognition across geographies. At Hyatt, it’s the culture that defines us. Every colleague of ours, irrespective of the location, is considered a member of the Hyatt family. We are renowned for our purpose to care for people, and to practice the same, one needs to be empathetic towards every member of the ecosystem. 

We understand we are guests in our guests’ lives, and that’s where we try to make a difference by identifying their needs and preferences and accordingly introducing customized offerings that help them consider us part of their lives. For our owners, we value their investment made in our hotels, and we strive to get them maximum returns. Lastly and most importantly, the community we operate in. Through programs like RiseHY, we are bringing youth from underserved communities to get training and ultimately work with us at Hyatt. We aim to hire 10,000 Opportunity Youth globally by 2025.

The humanity, kindness, and relentless dedication to the purpose of care showcased at Hyatt in these challenging times make me truly grateful and optimistic about our future.

 

What are the sustainable practices to follow to ensure environmental responsibility? 
Every responsible business needs to think about the future and the impact of our actions in the long run, and going the sustainable way definitely helps reduce the carbon footprint for hotels. It’s good to note that consciousness is growing across the spectrum. Hotels are putting ESG goals on their agenda, implementing emission plans, and promoting the local community. Guests are more aware of environmental concerns and corrective measures. 

At Hyatt, we also have built-in sustainability in every aspect of our operations and ensure that we contribute to protecting the environment in the long run. In July 2021, we launched our World of Care platform to bring more transparency into our efforts around the areas of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG). In July 2022, we announced progress on our ESG commitments and initiatives with our first World of Care Highlights report and second annual DE&I report spotlighting how colleagues and properties are bringing World of Care to life.

As an organization, we support responsible travel and aim for our colleagues and our guests to form deeper connections with local communities and the environment. From setting up water bottling plants at our hotels to ensure we use less plastic to upselling linen to make bags to water harvesting across multiple hotels – there are numerous initiatives that we’ve introduced. The Hyatt Loves Local is another global effort by Hyatt hotels to uplift and collaborate with small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

Could you draw a futuristic picture of how the hospitality industry would turn out, and what is your word of advice to industry leaders while hacking new opportunities?
Well, this has been a pivotal period for the entire hospitality industry, and every experience serves as a learning opportunity. Today, we see an even greater focus on innovation around tech introductions, safety benchmarks, and well-being aspects. All these have resulted in Hyatt hotels establishing itself as a trusted brand among guests and colleagues. 

In the long run, technology will play a key role in building unique and personalized experiences for our guests. The use of artificial intelligence and machine learning will not only improve the guest experience but also increase operational efficiency. Furthermore, hotels will continue to prioritize sustainability as more customers continue to become environmentally conscious and prefer brands focusing on environmental goals. Additionally, the rise of remote work and digital nomads will create new opportunities for hotels to attract longer-term guests with more flexibility and options that cater to the needs of remote workers. 

The hospitality industry is constantly evolving, and it’s essential to embrace new to stay ahead of the curve by being innovative and adaptable. At Hyatt, we aim to provide guests with a reimagined hospitality experience, which is only possible through personalization, creativity, and care. As travel begins again in full swing, we are focused on helping people get back out to explore new places, destress, and re-energize in a safe manner. 

 

Hobby: Listening to music. “Beatles are my all-time favorite band, and I love listening to Ghazals,” says Sunjae.

Favorite Cuisines: Japanese, Chinese, Italian, and Indian cuisines

Favorite Books: Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl and A Stone for Danny Fisher by Harold Robbins